I had to install a new well pump. The old one was probably 26 years old and original equipment. We’ve had the house for 12 years now, and in the last few years slowly noticed subtle changes in the house water supply.
Anyway, my question is: The water (high in iron) is running a ruddy color for 48 hrs now since the pump was installed. We thought things would have settled down by now. Can others share their experience? This is very unnerving. How long should we expect before the water may clear? If it matters, the well pump is 330 ft down. I really don’t understand what exactly a well consists of - for it not simply plunging a submersible pump into an aquifer. And, I am told an aquifer is not merely an underground lake. So, my mental picture is way off. Thus, I ask if you use well terms, it could help if you could help me picture what you’re talking about (or provide a link). Thx!
We’re also on a well, and our pump failed about 5 years ago. I vaguely recall we had some discolored watered afterwards, but I don’t think it lasted very long.
I am guessing the rust is primarily coming from the water line that runs down to the pump. There was probably a lot of rust and minerals on the inside surface of the pipe, and it got disturbed/dislodged during the removal and reinstallation. If this is the case, it should get better as time goes on.
Again, this is just a WAG. I really don’t know a whole lot about them.
We replaced our pump (240’) a few years ago. I think we had slightly brown cloudy water for more than 48 hours. I believe a typical well is a pipe about six inches in diameter with the pump hanging inside it, and water enters from the bottom of the pipe. It gets muddy in there and the mud settles to the bottom. Whenever you draw water it stirs up the mud a bit, but you may have dozens of feet between the pump and the muddy bottom so the mud stays below the pump. A big upset like this brings the mud all the way up to the pump and you may have to wait a few days for things to settle. But, I am no expert!
My mother had to do this a couple years ago at our farm, replacing an original pump from the mid 60’s. Tool close to a week for the iron-color to be completely gone. And that’s in summer, watering her huge garden and 2 barns’ worth of horses. Generally, the time it takes for the water to clear is related to the length of the pipes down to the pump.
A more accurate analogy for well water is not to think of an underground lake or stream, but a gigantic underground sponge made of rocks & sand – a perforated pipe is stuck into that, and the pump sucks up moisture that is in that ‘sponge’, and brings it up for your use.
My pump died this winter. I haven’t had it replaced, since I’ve had city water installed, but I miss my well for watering the horses. I’ve heard that it’s very expensive to replace well pumps, but maybe I should call the well service company and have them come out and check it and give an estimate.
Time to clear will also have a lot to do with the volume of water running through it. I remember when we had some word done when I was a kid my father let a couple of sinks and the hose run for hours, bitching all the while about what a princess my mother was.
Attach a hose to the base of the pressure tank and run the water off and on in two hour intervals.
In addition to shaking everything up by physically moving the equipment, it’s standard procedure to chlorinate the well for sanitation purposes(new equipment is laid out on the ground and could pick up bacteria) chlorine oxidizes iron in the water so you’ll see more rust for that reason too.
Did they set the new equipment at the same depth as the original equipment? If they set it lower you could be picking up sediment the original equipment avoided.
It’s straight up math to figure out if it’s worth it. In general you have to be using huge amounts of water for the cost of equipment and electricity to be cheaper than a municipal source.
I had mine replaced 5 years ago. I think the pump itself was around $450, and I was charged $200 for the labor.
I helped him replace it. It only took a couple hours, and it wasn’t that difficult. He had a pretty cool device for pulling out the pipe & pump. Itlookedlikethis.
Yeah, I can do the math. My water usage is not static, however. I’ve left the hose running while filling the troughs without auto-shutoffs and have had the horse pull over the one with the auto-shutoff, leaving it run. It’s a lot less painful when it’s my own well water running through my pasture.
Crafter_Man - That’s a lot less than I thought. Hmmm…a call might be in order next week while I’m on vacation.
In fairness I should also mention that the person who did it for me owns the local (small-town) hardware store and is a casual acquaintance. I think he cut me a break on the labor. A full-service company will probably charge a lot more.
It will clear up. I had significant turbidity in my well when I replace the pump. It took about 4 days till I didn’t notice it. You’re probably looking at suspended clay. On the good side, aluminum free baking powder will settle it out of the water if it hasn’t gone after about a week. I was personally freaked that my well was ruined and I’d need a filter. I could take a 1 pint jar of water, sprinkle it with baking powder and get a 1/2 inch of silt in the bottom after sitting for about 4 hours.
StG - my well was probably the most expensive you can imagine. It takes a truck going over a long hill back into some woods. The pump needed to be strong enough to lift 300 foot upward and travel 1000 feet in total. My total cost was $1500 and that included them having to cut limbs to get the truck back to the well head.
